The Case of Being Reincarnated as a Noble in a World with a Skewed Gender Ratio - 18-19

Chapter 18: I’m 5 Years Old Now

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Finally, or to be precise, time passed by within a blink of an eye and I had become 5 years old. On the outside, I had grown a little taller. Also… I guess I was starting to look a bit more like a boy if I do say so myself. People still mistook me for a girl sometimes though.. 

And now, I’d like to take this opportunity to look back at what had happened so far to assess my current situation. Taking a breather and looking back every once in a while was important, after all.

I happened to meet Wuxian, a slave trader and Leila, her slave. Seeing how horrible Leila looked, I decided to buy her. Of course, at that time, I didn’t have any money with me. I planned on asking my mother for money and then I’d pay her back with the money I earned through a new business venture I had in mind. However, Wuxian was more interested in what I had in mind rather than cold hard money. It seemed she wanted to get involved with my business somehow.

Her proposal was a godsend for me, since I was lacking in manpower and… Basically everything else. I was able to take Leila in too. Upon returning to the inn, my mother said something nonsensical like,”Bu-Buying a girl… Even though you already have us… Ar-Are you not satisfied with us?!”

So she said, but after explaining everything to her, she praised me for it. 

I took Leila in and freed her from slavery. She lived with me as my personal maid now. At first, she barely spoke and never smiled, but gradually, she started to talk and smile more. And allow me to tell you, her smile was really cute! When I complimented her, her expressions and demeanor kept on changing in rapid succession. Her fair white skin turned bright red, making her appear even more adorable! I believed these changes were a good sign.

Next, time for me to reflect on what I had done with Wuxian’s cooperation. The first thing I needed was funds. Without money, you couldn’t do anything, neither in my previous world nor this world. Anyway, the first thing in my focus was entertainment. In this world, the main form of entertainment was either hunting or target-shooting games. It was an indoor game where you used a small bow to hit a target. The target was made by using a small clothes rack with fabric draped over it and then you’d hang the target with a weight in front of it. 

Hunting serves as both a way to find food and combat training, making it a killing two birds with one stone activity. But, that was it. Hunting. It clearly didn’t provide much entertainment. 

And so, by following the stereotypical template of isekai stories, I made and sold Reversi and well… It was very well received. I was genuinely surprised at how well the public accepted it! Of course, I also gave the king a special edition set. I also made another special set for Tia too! Each piece for Tia’s set had a cute engraving on it, super adorable! She was incredibly happy to receive it. Of course, I also made a special set for Lance and sent it to him. I received a letter in return, saying that Lance played with the reversi set I gave him with Teresa-san every day. The only downside in all of these was… It takes ages for letters to arrive. There was nothing I could do about that though. For now, at least.

After that, I also started making and selling spinning tops and stuffed animals. These two products had been selling quite well too. Without Wuxian, I wouldn’t be able to manufacture all these products. I was incredibly grateful for her help. Also, Wuxian had moved into our territory since my place was too far from her previous town, Kanrinsen. We had also built a factory to produce the goods we sold. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that this territory was the most developed territory in this kingdom. 

And then… Was there something else that I missed?

Right, right! First, I started making rice-malt from rice. What did I use that for? Of course, to make miso! By mixing soybeans, salt and the rice-malt, I finally completed something that could be called a miso after many trials and errors. Well, like I said, there was still a lot of room for improvement. Of course, this room had plenty of talented people. I got to meet professionals that could help us develop the miso paste. Surely, they would be able to take this miso prototype to a whole new level… Of course, I had also prepared the catchphrase to sell the miso.

“Maru Maru Maru Maru~♪ Marukome Aji・Miso♪”

Of course people here asked why I chose the name marukome, but I didn’t explain much further. I only told them it was what it was. This catchy jingle had become a massive hit too. 

Yeap~ Miso soup is the best! Other miso-flavored dishes are also the best!~

Of course, I had also published a recipe book for miso paste. This recipe book might had helped in sparking the popularity of miso paste…

And so, I was able to make money fairly quickly from all those business ventures. Of course, I had already decided what I would be using all that money for. I should be able to reveal my grand plan soon.. 

And the other stuff… I think that’s about it? Huh? You want to hear more about Tia? Just why do you want to know about her… Well, she’s the princess of this kingdom after all… It’s only natural for people to be curious about her, I guess….

I kept exchanging letters with Tia. We hadn’t met in person since her birthday party when we were three years old though. We were both too busy. Maybe Tia had become more grown up? She might become more adorable and beautiful? Thinking about it now… When I wrote about Leila in my letters, she kept asking for more details about Leila… Maybe Tia wanted to become friends with Leila?

In any case, I would need to go to the capital sooner or later. I hoped I would be able to meet her then..

I guess… That’s all I can think about now? Alright. I will be sure to do my best today as well!

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T/N: NOW TIME TO GO WATCH MARUKOME ADS! GO! ─=≡Σ(((งツ)ว

Chapter 19: A Date With Mother?

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“El, do you have some free time today?”

“Umm… Today…”

I was thinking of visiting the factory today….

“El, you do know that spending quality time with family is the most important thing, right? Your business is already on track, isn’t it? Besides… El, you’re still five…”

I-I guess she had a point. Maybe I had been neglecting my family a bit too much lately…

“I’m sorry, Mother.”

“Well, the main reason why I said all that is because I’ve been missing you, you know?”

Mom said with a wink.

How do I say it… My mother is really cute. Anything that she does is super adorable. 

“Today I want to have El all to myself. How about if we go on a date, El?”

When she said that with such a beaming smile on her face, how could I refuse her? Well, not like I had any plan to refuse her in the first place… 

“Yeah, sure.”

When I agreed, my mother immediately took something wrapped in a cloth that she had been hiding behind her back. 

“Then let’s have a picnic, just the two of us!~♡”

So she said, but… Could it be that she had packed us lunch since the start? But wait, what about the guards? Shouldn’t we have Miinya, Lety, Rinrin or Erin to come along with us? Well, it wouldn’t be a date if they had come. I guess my mother wanted to spend quality time together.

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“…So I thought to myself. There was a time when I could be so oblivious…”

“El? Even though we finally got to go on a date with just the two of us… You’re not allowed to think about unnecessary things, okay? At times like this, girls want you to focus only on them! Remember that!”

“…No, Mother… No, more importantly, where are the guards? I don’t mind going to the mountain, but I really can’t see any of the guards around. Or maybe the guards are hiding?”

“Today is a date, you know? There’s no need for guards to follow us, right?”

“…Huh?”

There weren’t any guards?? Not even one?!

“And besides…”

“Besides..?”

“Mother is here, you know?”

She gripped the hilt of the sword at her waist while making a dramatic pose. Appearance wise speaking, she really looked like a beautiful swordsman, but…

“Mother, you can fight? You can actually fight for real?”

“Ah-ah!! You thought Mother couldn’t fight, huh?!”

“Well, umm…”

I did… Sorry for doubting you, Mother…

“Believe it or not, but Mother is stronger than Miinya, you know? I even have more wins than losses against Teresa. *wink*”

I guess winking must be my mother’s signature move. Maybe this was my chance to sing an enka song, ‘Nostalgic Name’… Wait, that was a different kind of wink! ….Wait… Maybe… Just maybe… Maybe I could debut Mother and Miinya as idols?

“El?”

My apologies, I was thinking about unnecessary things again… But thank you! Thank you for the piercing glare, Mother! Your piercing glare had become a staple for me these days!

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We climbed up the mountain path up to halfway the mountain and then veered off onto a game trail until we eventually reached a clearing. 

How beautiful…

Before us, there was a field with various beautiful flowers blooming. Almost like a flower garden. The air felt incredibly crisp, the wind felt so refreshing against my skin. 

“This place… My father used to bring me here a long time ago… That person is your grandfather, you know?”

“My grandfather?”

“Yes. I’ve been to this field often with your grandfather and grandmother… This field is a special place that only our family knows…”

“…Mother.”

I gently held my mother’s hand and she squeezed my hand back ever so slightly.

“El… One day… When you find someone important to you, you should bring them here with you. This holds an important meaning to our family, after all…”

“Okay… I understand. So… I’ll be sure to come back here with you again, Mother.”

“El…”

I hugged my mother for a while and then, we ate our picnic meal and enjoyed a leisure time etching the beautiful scenery into our hearts before descending the mountain path. 

Rustle! Rustle!! Crack! Crack! Rustle!

While we were walking down the mountain path, something rustled through the grass, making its way towards us. 

“El, stay behind me.”

“O-Okay.”

Click… Shiiing!

Mother drew her sword and took a battle stance.

Bam! Suddenly, a pretty big wild boar appeared. The boar charged straight at us and Mother immediately sprang into action. 

Swish!

Mother swung her sword and yeah… I definitely couldn’t see the moment when my mother’s sword cut the bear. 

M-My mother was really strong. I better not go against her…

Zushaaaaaaa!!

The boar’s head rolled on the ground while the body fell down to the ground, motionless. 

Yeah… The sight of a freshly killed boar was really disgusting to see… So grotesque! Too grotesque!!!

“So gross…”

“El?!”

After that, my mother sang a cheery tune while she butchered the boar by the nearby river. As for me… Embarrassingly enough, I had my mother carry me on her back since I vomited when I saw the boar get killed by her. 

But you know, as much as I appreciate being carried on your back because it’d be dangerous to leave me in the forest, I’d much prefer it if you not butcher the boar while I was on your back. In fact, I might end up vomiting on you, Mother…

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T/N: MC is going to have stir-fry pork with miso for weeks ( > 〰 < )